Wisconsin adidas Invitational — Madison, Wis.
When/Where: Friday, Thomas Zimmer Championship Course in Madison, Wis.
Women: 10 a.m. MT — 6 kilometers
Men: 10:45 a.m. MT — 8 kilometers
Results: GoLobos.com, HarrierSolutions.comMeet Notes | Live Results | Live Stream ($) | USTFCCCA National Results Wall
At one of the biggest meets of the year, New Mexico head coach Joe Franklin has one simple directive for his Lobos: Run together.
“You have to find your friends,” Franklin said. “Run with the people you run with every day.”
Do that, and the Lobos can start building to bigger goals.
The University of New Mexico cross country program is heading to the preeminent Wisconsin adidas Invitational this Friday in Madison, Wis., with the goal of bolstering its credentials for the national championships.
The Lobos, who have the nation’s No. 1 women’s team and an improving men’s squad, have design on capturing some wins with the ultimate goal of perfecting their résumés for the 2015 NCAA Championships in November.
“If you can go into the meet and place in the top 15, you have a shot to get done what you need to to get to the national championships,” Franklin said. “They’re very capable of that. They’re training very well.”
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31 teams make the NCAA Championships — two automatic bids from nine regions plus 13 at-large teams — and New Mexico can make strides toward securing an at-large berth, should either team need one.
The main goal for the Lobos heading to Wisconsin is managing their team spreads. The women had success at that en route to resoundingly winning the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational two weeks ago.
The men were solid at Notre Dame, but their spread of nearly a minute was too much to overcome as they placed ninth.
“If our gap is small, they can accomplish great things,” Franklin said. “If our gap is large, they will struggle. But every year, if your gap is large, you’re in trouble.”
The Lobos will also have to contend with a stacked field when they run on the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course.
20 women’s teams and 17 men’s teams ranked in the USTFCCCA National Coaches’ Poll will be making their case for the NCAAs Friday at the seventh running of the meet.
Along with the consensus No. 1 Lobo women, No. 3 Providence, No. 6 Boise State, No. 8 Iowa State and No. 10 Washington will be racing in the women’s six-kilometer races. In the men’s eight-kilometer race, No. 2 Syracuse, No. 4 Stanford, No. 5 Iona, No. 7 Virginia, No. 8 Michigan and No. 9 BYU will be competing.
But the women — who are the consensus No. 1 team for the second straight poll — are the team to beat, and counter the star-studded field with a superb team.
Pacing the women’s juggernaut is the four-headed lead pack that features reigning Mountain West Athlete of the Week Courtney Frerichs along with Rhona Auckland, Alice Wright, and Calli Thackery.
That foursome tore through the field at the Notre Dame Invitational, largely running together as a pack as they placed 2-4-5-6.
Add in Molly Renfer’s 12th-place performance at Notre Dame, and the Lobos simply strolled past the competition.
And while the Lobos have the inside track to an automatic bid to the NCAAs, continuing to polish their résumé is key, and duplicating their showing from Notre Dame is the catalyst.
“The expectation is run with each other,” Franklin said about the women’s team. “Don’t worry about what’s going on around you. Don’t worry about any peripherals. Just run with each and do what they do every day.”
Outside of the core four, UNM will also look to Renfer, Whitney Thornburg and Heleene Tambet to claim that fifth spot in the scoring five.
For the men, the Lobos will rely on Elmar Engholm and Graham Thomas for strong finishes. That duo registered solid outings at Notre Dame, but the men managed just a ninth-place finish at the meet due to a large spread between the five scorers.
“On the men’s side,” Franklin said, “we have to make sure that we’re getting a very short spread one to five in order for us to have the success that we’re accustomed to.”
Looking to tighten that spread will be Matt Bergin, Zac Castillo Jesús Mendoza, Josh Kerr and Dan Milechman.
There’s talent in that group, but translating it from workouts to the course is critical for the men.
“I think people are getting more fit, that’s for sure,” Franklin said. “Fitness is key. Noter Dame was the first race, and we typically run better the second race. Hopefully that trend holds true.”
The women will compete Friday at 10 a.m. MT, while the men will toe the line at 10:45 p.m. MT. Check back Friday afternoon on GoLobos.com for meet results and a New Mexico recap.